“Together for a better day” is the name of the musical event that was held on December 1st at the Avicii Arena in Stockholm and involved artists from all over the world. Not only Swedish singers, musicians and producers came together to celebrate the life and musical legacy of the DJ. The inaugural concert, which will take place every year around the same time, saw the participation of Zara Larsson, Miriam Bryant and the Swedish dance music duo Galantis. Fifteen-year-old Ella Tiritiello, who went viral for her interpretation of the 2015 song, “For A Better Day”, from which the event took its name, also made an appearance. She took the stage with Zara Larsson to sing the piece, with live musical accompaniment from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra.
The show was organized by the “Tim Bergling Foundation“, an association created by the family of the Swedish artist, better known as Avicii, who committed suicide at the age of 28. The goal of the project is to raise awareness of the fact that mental disorders are the second leading cause of death in the world and to support scientific organizations engaged in preventive actions against this type of disease. In Europe, in fact, there are 9 million adolescents with mental health disorders. It is estimated that 1,200 children between the ages of 10 and 19 end their lives each year, for an average of 3 suicides per day.
During the 2019 International Music Summit, Tim’s father, Klas Bergling, spoke about the importance of recognizing and treating the first signs of deteriorating mental health – anxiety and depression – outlining the factors that can contribute to these conditions. On December 5, 2019, the association had already held a first charity concert in Tim’s honor, called the “Avicii Tribute Concert for Mental Health Awareness“, the proceeds of which were donated to the foundation. All the artists who have collaborated with Tim participated at the event, in a live performance that retraced the entire career of the Swedish DJ.
Various projects and initiatives of the “Tim Bergling Foundation”: the #ForABetterDay movement, the Avicii Arena, the publication of the artist’s official biography, the construction of musical studios in the regions at risk of Sweden, the realization of the Avicii Experience and a memorial in the neighborhood where Tim lived.In the first case, through the aforementioned hashtag, young people from all over the world can make their voices heard, sharing life experiences, thoughts, ideas or suggestions with the association and other young people in their same situation. This material will then be delivered to the Prime Minister and the Swedish Government, in order to educate society to listen to young people and work for a better day.
In addition, on 19 May 2021 at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm the name was changed to Avicii Arena, to allow the foundation to carry out charity concerts, such as the one that has just taken place, or other events whose goal is to create “a center for sharing ideas and welcoming activities with particular attention to the mental health of young people ”, these are the words of Klas Bergling.
On November 16, 2021, the official biography of the Swedish artist was released, also available in English by the end of the year. The writing of the book was entrusted to the journalist Måns Mosesson whose intent is “to celebrate a visionary of music who, thanks to a rare melodic sensitivity, has made himself loved all over the world“, says Mosesson, “without however neglecting the numerous difficulties that Tim faced ”. Again, the proceeds will go to finance the association.
Following the concert “Together for a better day”, Klas Bergling announced that he wanted to carry out music studies in the most vulnerable places in Sweden, to allow young Swedes to use their free time and experiment with their creativity. “I hope we can create the feeling that we really do it together, because it is only together that we can make a difference. Young people are our future and we must be afraid of them. It is unacceptable that they are getting worse and suicide rates are rising, it is our duty to do what we can to break this trend, ”says Klas Bergling.
The construction of a museum entirely dedicated to the Swedish artist is planned, which should be inaugurated in Stockholm, his hometown, in spring of 2022. It will be called “Avicii Experience” and will offer the viewer a totally interactive journey, retracing the life and stages that characterized the musical journey of the DJ. The museum will also offer the viewer photos, videos and exclusive tracks never released.
In addition, a charity auction with two VIP tickets up for grabs to participate in the Avicii Experience has been created by the foundation. Here is the link where you can make your offer!
Also in Stockholm, a memorial is planned in the Östermalm district (more precisely in Humlegården Park) where Avicii was born and raised, but a date has not yet been decided. “It should be a nice and harmonious place in the center of Östermalm, where people should be able to remember Tim Bergling and find joy and inspiration, but also to seek comfort and honor Tim and all the other people who died too soon due to a mental illness, “a spokesperson for the foundation said. “The venue should remember that more needs to be done to reduce mental illness and self-harming behavior and at the same time it should encourage people to find strength in music,” he adds.
The goal of the foundation and its projects is to draw a lesson from the death of a young artist, who sacrificed his life in the name of an often underestimated but lethal evil. His loss is a warning to save all those young people (but not only) who, like him, suffer from mental disorders.
Graduated in modern literature at the Alma Mater Studiorum in Bologna, I am graduating from the master’s faculty of journalism and communication, because writing has always been what I do best. I wish I could combine business with pleasure and therefore reconcile writing with music, my greatest passions.